Ain’t nothing I love to see more in the game than Arsenal stealing a win in the final minutes of a game.
Why?
It shows our players are still fighting when the season is dead.
It shows that in fact, we are capable of scoring goals and creating chances.
It feels good, after a season of having those sorts of moments going the other way.
Roy Hodgson’s last game in charge was a tough one to analyse. We controlled the game playing some nice football early on, the passing was slick, Palace couldn’t get out of the own area.
Then we scored. Saka and Tierney combined beautifully, the Englishman back heeling for KT to cross to the back stick where Nico was prowling with a perfect volleyed strike with his weaker foot. Pure Arsenal, the type of goal Arteta wakes up to after a deep bout of REM sleep.
Arsenal then fell back into a familiar pattern. We took our foot off the gas. We let Palace have a crack. This wasn’t helped by the general violent conduct of the Palace players. Benteke swiped at Mo, somehow managing to avoid a red card. A little late, Nico bodged a touch, Partey fouled, the freekick was whipped into the box and Benteke fouled two players on his way to a diving header that drew the game level.
Did it not feel like the officials were angling for a nice last game for Roy?
The tougher the ask, the harder Arsenal players fall back on the patterns of player we aren’t really that good at right now. We created very little. Everyone looked like they were remembering the instructions a little late. Palace were eating up the predictability of it all.
Arteta did make changes though, he brought on Odegaard and Martinelli. It helped. Mike McDonald wrote that there needed to be a rebellion in the system and it happened. Odegaard slipped a beautiful inswinger to the backpost where Martinelli gambled and bundled the ball home. Then Nico Pepe took command with a mazy power run that ended with a beautifully curled low shot. A £72m goal if ever there was one.
Some performances of note:
Nico Pepe. He’s a weird player. His G/A this season sits at 17. He’s scored some great goals. But at the same time, you can see why he causes frustration. His poor touch led to the freekick they scored from. He rarely takes the ball on a run. His first instinct is always to stop play, have a think, pass it backwards. I’d love him to be more consistently explosive.
Auba had a poor afternoon. Hard to go at him, he had malaria, which is a rough, rough thing to deal with. But overall he looked well off the pace again, he’s not taking chances on balls, he’s not making good runs and his holdup play is nowhere near what we get with Lacazette. His game is one of an assassin, hiding in the box and poaching, not sure why Arteta tries to make him come deep, it’s not his game and never will be. Bigger question: Does he want to be here? It’s one we tend to ask after every game. If he does, there’s a lot of work to do next season to make him work in the system, Arteta can’t keep asking things of players that don’t have it in them.
A lot of people were moaning about Thomas Partey. I don’t hate his game. I think he’d be a lot better if he wasn’t the singular driving force for creating openings. But, I still prefer him into the starting 11 than out of it. His form will improve, he’s very press resistant, he just needs to reduce some of that high-risk behaviour. He’s a bit Hollywood with his passing, but in a system fairly accused of being too rigid, he’s a breath of fresh air for his speed of thought and mostly on-point delivery.
Martin Odegaard has been up and down, but his talent for unpicking defences and opening up space with his movement has been a miss since his injury. He’s a different level on the ball, we don’t have a player that can break down a team the way he can, I think it’d be a huge add if we could land him next season. Let’s be honest, he’s not changing the fortunes on Real Madrid, but he certainly could ours given a proper run at the first team.
I had a lot of heart for some of that cover game from Gabriel. Another player who dealt with a horrendous virus, only to come back flustered. He has great pace, he’s powerful, he just needs to iron out some of the reckless in his game that has made him look a bit all over the place this year.
Final shoutout goes to Bernd Leno. Fast distro, good saves, totally dominant in his box against monster opposition. I’d prefer if we didn’t lose him this summer. He’s had a rough year, but if the club sorts the keeping personnel issues in the background, perhaps he can hang on. Though it’s worth noting… he has 2 years left on his deal, has shown no intention to sign, so technically, he should be getting sold this summer. Let’s see where this goes.
Actually, final shoutout goes to the fans. Kieran Tierney has probably never felt better about being booed. Football is better with fans, yesterday, it was a pleasure to hear the singing and the overall joy from the fans. Life is returning to normal. I couldn’t be happier.
Back to the bigger picture.
Game won. That’s 4 wins on the bounce. This is the table since we added creative players to the squad.
It has been a very rough season for a number of reasons. The Europa League collapse, based on what happened earlier in the season would have seen most coaches fired, but it has been clear for a while that Stan K is trying to replicate the good vibes he’s getting with a young innovative coach in America at LA Rams.
Arteta is here to stay, so people have to stop crying about it and look for positive signs of life.
That table above is a positive sign. It’s 62% if the season. If you are choosing to prioritise the first 38% to get to the truth of whether this project is viable, you are being disingenuous.
Over that period, we have the second-best defence over that time period, the third most goals, second-most points.
That’s Champions League form. If we’d been half the mess we were at the start of the season, which was still bad, we’d be in the top four right now.
Are there problems to solve? Absolutely. Arteta is a rookie coach, people complaining that he’s getting things wrong don’t seem to grasp that concept, or that it’s part of the deal. They also seem to forget the plethora of other coaches that are far more experienced than he is, managing equally bland seasons. Carlo A was hired a few days before Arteta at an expensively assembled Everton side that were 4 points behind where Freddie/Emery left us. He’s 1 point ahead of us. Mourinho, the most winningest manager in the world has left Spurs 2 points ahead of us, after a run at the title. Klopp, one of the best in the world, 8 points ahead on 66 after 99 points last season.
If we beat Brighton, at worst, we’ll be 9 points off 3rd come the end of the season. 9 points of a Chelsea side that was top last season, then added £250m worth of talent to their ranks. Again, I don’t keep on saying this because it’s an amazing feat, I say it because the context for this season for almost everyone is that playing football with no fans in a pandemic year has been a fucking nightmare across the board.
Then factor in our unusually nightmarish squad challenges… well, it’s not quite suicide watch like some would have you believe.
This summer, which needs to go very well, will add more players into the system that can do the things positional football demands. The defence will need to find more quality on the ball with a centre back and a right back. We’re going to need more than one Odegaard this summer, because we’re absolutely nowhere through the middle in big games. We’ll also need a top-quality midfielder, and if Arteta’s, ‘Who else plays as many teenagers as us? We can’t just put them all in’, is to be believed, then chances are we’ll not be looking at Camavinga this summer. I mean, I am totally guessing there.
The ideal scenario next season is one where we’re not constructing complex mechanisms to protect our weaknesses as a squad. That’s the dream. It’ll take a lot to get there, but it’s possible.
The hope for next season is simple… the benchmark level is what we’ve seen since Christmas, then after December, we find a new gear that looks more like the modern Arsenal we hope can exist under this manager.
So, the last game of the season has something on it. The chance to finish above Spurs and gain entrance into a European trophy no fan wants. At least it’ll be interesting.
Also, Harry Kane asks out at Spurs and all the media are begging Levy to let him go. Magic.
See you in the comments, podcasts return next week because I am not at home for the week.
AFCF – Being disingenuous works both ways. The same people that are highlighting the current 23 game run are the ones who were trashing Emery during his 22 game unbeaten run previously. Hardly ‘fair’. Equally for Emery xG was deemed to be incredibly damning yet suddenly under the new regime the same people no longer wanted to talk about that.
Any fair minded fan would have to admit that both side of the argument are equally selective in their use of data to support their position.
CG I would point out to you that Arsenal have won and drawn both games against West Ham this season. No-one disputes that this is a disappointing season. However, there have been plenty of so-called major clubs who have been in far worse shape than us. I have experienced highs and lows during the time that I have supported club. The highs included three league and cup doubles and seven league titles. All the other so-called big clubs have been relegated in the last 50 years and in many cases been on the verge of bankruptcy. So the idea that… Read more »
Mikel again suggesting that players will be staying with us: On Willock: “I am really happy things have gone so well for Joe [Willock] because of the potential he has,” said Arteta. “It was great for him to go away and have a different experience. He has grabbed that opportunity in a really positive and remarkable way and he will be back with us. “We will have those conversations with him and plan the next few years with him. And no doubt to the chagrin of some on Bellerin: The Gunners boss also says defender Hector Bellerin is not fit… Read more »
Imagine using a time period excluding away games to City, Pool, Manure, Everton, Leeds and Spuds for proving your point.
The first 14 games had some of our toughest games in the whole calendar but let’s base our analysis on the rest of the season that exclude the toughest games out of the equation. How practical.
Stroller: “So the idea that Arsenal are in crisis is ridiculous.”
Did you really said that with a straight face?
Bob N16,
Except that you cannot play with only 1 dynamic defensive central midfielder and have both fullback bombing forward. At every loss of the ball, the defense would be terribly exposed.
This exactly what we had with the latter Wenger and against top teams we were spanked because of the open door policy. We have seen that with Partey struggling on his own against Villarreal.
Beard of Zeus “We’ve got players capable of making things happen against any team in the world but what this team lacks is a creative/technical leader akin to Cesc or Cazorla” Yes, we was saying this yesterday. I mentioned the type of player Wenger liked in midfield areas and those are what we need now. Cazorla, Rosicky, Wilshire, Cesc etc all players who moved themselves and the ball quickly between the lines and could receive the ball comfortably on the half-turn or with back to play. They could finish too. Stick any of those in this team and you would… Read more »
So the idea that Arsenal are in crisis is ridiculous ES Yes, but it felt like the makings of a crisis just before that Boxing Day game at home to Chelsea. Was I the only one thinking that a bottom 5 finish was a distinct possibility half way through the season? Loss after loss, the team bereft of creativity and a squad full of underpetforming players that were tanking and showing no sign of fight. As an Arsenal fan, you pinch yourself and say ‘we’ll never be as bad as Fulham, WBA, Brighton, SU, Newcastle etc. but in December it… Read more »
Stroller, you don’t seem to get the nuances when you highlight games such as the pair against West Ham this season. At home West Ham totally outplayed us, the xG figures were Arsenal 1.33, WHam 2.32. We should have lost that game. In the return 3-3 draw you’ll recall that we were totally outclassed in the first half and went 3-0 down. Antonio for West Ham missed an open goal from a yard when the Hammers were 3-2 up and the xG from that game was West Ham 2.51, Arsenal 1.35. So you’ve basically highlighted two games where we would… Read more »
Raptora,
Arsenal is not threatened by relegation nor by bankruptcy so we are not in crisis. Haven’t you taken your Happy pill yet?
Once you take them, you’ll see everything Arsenal is rosy and we are progressing steadily.
Champagne “Pretty dim comment for you. Same Chelsea that finished top 4 last season and spent 250 mil on players in the summer? Same Chelsea that has an owner that’s written off hundreds of millions in pursuit of trophies? We aren’t behaving like them? I’m shocked. See this sort of comment for me is perhaps reflects a naive view as to just how Chelsea operate.Should Arsenal behave like them ? If you look at FLs first season at Chelsea’s when they were subject to a transfer ban and whilst they were able to bring in Kovatic they sold a significant… Read more »
raptora
Absolutely.
andy
What do you want Arteta to say?
That Bellerin and Willock everyone is on sale? Decrease their value even further and start with a weak hand during the negotiations?
How do you think Dortmund and Monaco and Lyon get such good prices for their players. Aulus and Zorc always say their players are not for sale until the moment a contract is agreed and signed.
“Imagine using a time period excluding away games to City, Pool, Manure, Everton, Leeds and Spuds for proving your point.“ Typical dim analysis. There’s no exclusion of anything, the matter of Boxing Day comes because we fielded a genuine #10 for the first time in the season. How many times does that need reiterated? Nobody cares if you agree or disagree with what’s being said, but you should be able to at least understand what’s being written. Boring af to watch you particularly, moan about being told to ‘shut up and support the team’ when it’s not being said by… Read more »
Andy, I made the same point before. that run we currently in is deceptive. Some are using stats to show improvement, but Our xG/xGA are not distributed homogeneously. We had a few games such as WestBrom where we scored freely, but many more where we outscored our xGA and the opposition underscored theirs. Out of the current run there has been a few results where luck was deciding factors. In some like Fulham it was talent and perseverance. However luck will even itself out. My take is that next season, results will align themselves more closely with the performance. So… Read more »
Terraloon
Way easier to be decisive when you have an owner absorbing the finance of agents fees, gash transfers and hoarding of talent to begin with.
Everyone and their dog wants Kroenke more invested, literally, but don’t make out we’re a mere mentality shift from being just like Chelsea. They’re streets clear financially.
andy 1886
You were obviously watching a different game to me.
Yes West Ham outplayed us to lead 3-0. However, we took control of the game to draw level and indeed could/should have won the game at end.
CT, I wouldn’t expect him to comment at all on player contracts if I’m honest. If you think other clubs are so naive as to fall for the old ‘we’re not selling’ nonsense then I don’t know what to say. Everyone and their dog knows which players are for sale and for how much. Agents, even players talk to alternative employers all the time, this isn’t 1964. Arteta’s comments on individual players will have absolutely zero impact on their value.
Stroller, then we can agree to disagree on the 3-3 draw. How about the 1-1 home game, how did you see that one?
Raptor “Imagine using a time period excluding away games to City, Pool, Manure, Everton, Leeds and Spuds for proving your point”. You are doing it again, talking absolute bollocks in an attempt to discredit a 23 game run of games. We can all do that and pick apart the ‘games’ or those you decide are easy or difficult. For example, that run does not include the three points we picked up at Old Trafford or the wins against the bottom sides Fulham and Sheffield United, what you and your lot call ‘shit’ teams, whenever we beat them. It does include… Read more »
Why does Mikel get the credit form”finding” attacking midfielders after Boxing Day and immunity from criticisms for botching the season with his bizarre summer decisions.
Are we supposed to forget that he called Willian thrice to.convince him to sign for us and then proceeded to play him all through the autumn despite his shambolic form?
Mikel owns the entire season. Who plays a central midfield of one in the most important game of the season?
This place is Agendaville HQ
ES ””””I would point out to you that Arsenal have won and drawn both games against West Ham this season””””””””” I would also point out Sheffield United won at Old Trafford this season. Means nowt. They are going down and the manager who did great things there , got the chop. Don’t want excuses, don’t want to be nice, fair or popular. I simply want people at Arsenal to do their jobs, which they are extremely well paid for and that is to get Arsenal above West Ham and beat that Villarreal Circus in a 2 legged semi. The much… Read more »
I see that the latest Sunday Times rich list has been published. Ignoring the fact that there are record numbers of UK billonaires and thir income rose by an average of 21.7% in a pandemic while people were still visiting food banks here are the top ten who could potentially invest in a certain football club (ignore #6 as that ship has likely sailed): 1, Sir Leonard Blavatnik – £23bn (oil and media) 2, David and Simon Reuben – £21.46bn (property and internet) 3, Sri and Gopi Hinduja and family – £17bn (industry and finance) 4, Sir James Dyson and… Read more »
“Why does Mikel get the credit form”finding” attacking midfielders after Boxing Day and immunity from criticisms for botching the season with his bizarre summer decisions.“
Mikel is immune from criticisms……said literally no one ever.
Valentin, I was not suggesting a gung ho approach that exposes the defence. My argument was based on how little support Pepe, in particular, was receiving down the right hand side. Earlier in the season, Bellerin.in particular, was rarely overlapping. When Partey has been unavailable, we played two out of Xhaka, Ceballos and Elneny. Their athletic deficiencies meant that they would rarely support the attacking players. With Partey and another CM with recovery speed, we would much more likely to see one of them, judiciously joining up with the more attacking players. I also feel that having Saliba’s athleticism in… Read more »
Charlie “No, it’s the contrary. Apparently anyone that looks for the positive shoots of the season needs to reconcile the fact that they apparently ‘support a manager over the club’…..according to you.It’s pathetic.” This. Exactly. I want to talk about the team, recruitment and about football in general. These goons just obsess on Arteta to such an extent they end up saying the most mind-blowing stupid things. They make this blog so boring. Moan, moan bloody moan. It is endless. They suck all the fun out of being a football fan. They want to ruin it for all of us… Read more »
We did Cazorla but should have lost as we were totally outplayed which was my point. But then ‘performances’ only counted when it was Emery at the helm right??
CG, Im not Sidney, try Sidibe, Sidak, Sidi
AFCF, Isn’t it equally boring to see people complaining about other people moaning? To see people insulting others because they have a different point of view? Pot, kettle, black and all that.
Dissenter ‘this place is Agendaville’. The irony and lack of self-awareness in this statement is staggering!
I think coming back from three-nil down shows character.
Since when has that been a negative? Not as long as I have been playing and watching football.
Now if we had gone three-nil up it would be a different argument.
BobN16
Dissenter ‘this place is Agendaville’. The irony and lack of self-awareness in this statement is staggering!”
I literally spat my coffee out!! Dissenter must have been banging the delete key the moment he read it back.
ES Missed Liverpool being relegated! You really do need to take off those red and white tinted glasses. So here we are a club with a stadium and wage bill that needs CL football to justify the levels of expenditure.It’s likely that City and Chelsea will have earned around £75 million more than Arsenal this season alone from reaching the CL final. Think about that for one second £75 million more. There is a need for Arsenal to cut its wage bill but good luck with that ! Arsenal are a club that’s current structure of the pitch is not… Read more »
andy
If everyone, their dogs, their cats and even their unborn children knew which players are for sale its still standard negotiation tactic to not go out in the media and advertise your players.
Fans are protesting against the owners, other clubs are sacking managers that are higher than us in the table, millions of pounds are wasted down the drain year in year out for players that add little to no value for their money starting in the Summer of Mustafi, Xhaka and Perez for combined £95m to the signing of 2 expensive CFs in the space of 6 months for a combined £110m so that one of them is banished on the wing, the god awful extension of Ozil and the signing of Willian. I guess that you are happy with the… Read more »
Andy No. If you read my articles, I have been trying to talk about the team, players we need to recruit etc. However, instead of being able to have that discussion, people like you and the other bores just want to change the conversation to Arteta. It’s obsessive. We don’t all want to sack the manager. Respect our views instead of trying to enforce your “I want” narrative because we know what you want, the blog content is 90% what the protest element want. And please stop the ridiculous disingenuous bollocks. You lot are like an eight year old child… Read more »
Champagne I don’t my point was that Chelsea operate in a smarter way Arsenal are fat too indecisive
Far
And you are overestimating the general knowledge among the fans here. As Arsenal fans we know who is for sale and which positions we are going to buy. But other fans dont have an idea what we are going to do and we don’t generally what other clubs are going to do. Ofc there are some football fans who are know it all but generally the majority of the casual fans only really know what their club is doing. For example my mates who support other football clubs ask me why Arteta is not playing such a fast full back… Read more »
andy1886, you have a point but I think the issue for some, including myself, is that the posts can often be dominated by repeated condemnation of Arteta and his continued existence as Arsenal manager. For those that ‘Tourette-like’ continue to post this valid position, they are ignoring that the repetitiveness of their position is the issue not their understandable point of view. They tend to then go on the attack, particularly with Pedro, accusing others of being apologists for Arteta, the rather than acknowledging the reality that we’ll be starting the season with him and moving on with a different… Read more »
Raptora
100% with you on your view of the Arsenal of today
AFCF
‘My articles’!
Jesus, self important much. You are the most boring contributor on here and your lack of self awareness and hypocrisy that you spout is quite astounding!
AFCF – And there you go and prove my point with unnecessary insults.
How about this:
If you could pick three players from any of our teams in the last 5-6 years to add to our current first 11 who would you add? Based on how they were playing then not now.
Mine are:
1. Santi Cazorla
2. Aaron Ramsey
3. Tomas Roscky
I would stick Yaya Sanogo on the bench……?!
Matt
Thanks. I take that as a compliment.
It wasn’t intended as one, but you crack on.
AFC Forever: “or the wins against the bottom sides Fulham and Sheffield United, what you and your lot call ‘shit’ teams, whenever we beat them.” “This disingenuous bullshit is not a one-off it is what you do all the time. Beat a team and it’s because they are shit, unlucky or because the players ignored the coaches tactics.” Dude, I was one of the few people here that actually celebrated the win at Fulham as we indeed play good football in the opening day of the season. Others said Fulham is the worst team to play in the EPL for… Read more »
Bob N16, Pepe does not have a right foot. So his first instinct will not be making the pass to an overlapping fullback. He may use the run as a decoy and then attempt to shoot on goal, but he will not make the pass. And he tries it will be underhit and intercepted. That’s why Bellerin was told to make under lapping run and why Chambers who make overlapping run and crosses started when Pepe was moved to the left. With Pepe, you either have him coming inside from the right and shoot or left side players making a… Read more »
If Arteta is not immune from criticisms then why all the abuse aimed at people that think he’s in over his head?
AFC , I’m referring to you in particular
You took offense when Wenger Eagle wrote that you were ‘talking from both sides of your mouth” and yet you carry a machete around the blog attacking people who disagree with you.
Arteta is going to divide the fan base until he gets eventually fired, let’s learn to live with that.
This website is becoming with few exceptions an “anti Arsenal” programme. Far too many people post just negatives and you have to ask the question why do they bother to support Arsenal at all. I am all for constructive criticism but not when what is posted is a constant diatribe. When we win we are accused of being lucky. When we lose there is a tirade. If we play well it is seldom acknowledged. If we play badly we are rubbish. I doubt that there is another club in EPL with such a negative group of supporters as sadly Arsenal… Read more »
Bob, that’s a fair point, my issue is that the debate is very polarised. As an ‘Arteta Out’ man (and I don’t continually harp on about it) it would be nice to see those of the opposing view admit that often they are just as biased in their viewpoint as those that they condemn. One other thing, there are certain culprits on here who can’t seem to debate anything without resorting to insults (actually I’m not specifically refering to AFCF, there are worse on the blog, we all know who they are).
The post-December league table is as bad as it gets but it’s Pedro’s house.
He can continue to drum up whatever tickles his fancy, doesn’t mean people will stay quite though.
Andy Mate, if I had a quid for everytime I’ve been insulted on this blog, called and Arteta fan boy or whatever, I would be able to afford a season ticket at club level. We saw this with Brexit, a complete polarisation of views and it ends up becoming toxic. Many of us, you included, have supported this club for over 40 years and it is actually pretty sad the way we have become so polarised since Wenger. For years this club has been treated as a rich mans plaything, there has been a severe problem with those who run… Read more »
*called an
Stroller lacking nuance again I see.
People who believe that the manager, or any manager, isn’t the best one to deliver results aren’t ‘anti-Arsenal’ (a phrase well used at the asylum that is ‘Untold Arsenal’) they simply believe that the club is being damaged by that individual’s employment. To continue to support an individual that isn’t serving the club would be ‘anti-Arsenal’. How about applying that to players? Were supporters stating that Sanogo wasn’t Arsenal quality ‘anti-Arsenal’? Or does that only apply to managers that you happen to support (obviously not the previous incumbent).
ES People support teams by and large because of things like family history, peer pressure, where you live or maybe because they want to feel part of a successful club. It’s far too arrogant for anyone to suggest they support a club for the right reasons and others should in effect butt out Most of the negative comments come from deep frustration because no matter how some want to package things up Arsenal there has been a serious decline. Ok you are a glass half full chap but this decline has to be addressed because even just standing still won’t… Read more »
“The whole falling back onto some shit stat like xG to justify a manager is nonsense.”
If only we had a time machine to go back and let Pedro know that back in 2018.
The “ Negativity squad” can never say who is the manager that can turn it all around.The negativity squad can never admit to progress of any kind.( can’t include defensive improvement or clearing of deadwood).The negativity squad will only allow one season to turn it all around.I.e top four & fabulous football.The negativity squad will not accept any data showing improvement.The negativity squads aim in life is to depress you😩
Terraloon
I don’t inherently disagree, but it’s very important to note that they behave that way because of Abramovich. He has one method of achieving success and it’s paying a premium for players and managers.
Previously they’ve hoarded unreal amounts of talent which has generated even more income to offset poor signings. When you have the means readily replace underwhelming talents then you can be far more decisive with cutting a ‘modest’ loss on these players.
AFC You say all of that, but surely you can’t be oblivious to your contribution towards that disharmony? What do you think is going to happen when you keep questioning whether people are fans if they happen to have a different opinion to you? As I have said before, everyone who contributes here is a fan of Arsenal. People chose to support the club in different ways and people have different opinions on pretty much all aspects of the way the club is run. That is healthy because it would be a pretty boring place if we all had the… Read more »
Nice coincidence that one crap euro competition (Eurovision) is to be followed by an alight bun fight to qualify for another (euro conference). It’s a pleasant situation. Qualify, and we’ll be treated to watching Flo, Azeez and others bossing it against grasshoppers. Fail to qualify and we can laugh at Kane-less spurs getting a scoreless draw away to anzi macachkala. A win win. Glass half full right Pedro?
Interesting final Sunday awaits. Anyone got any interesting predictions? I’m going for benteke to score an unanswered homecoming hattrick chez les bin dippers.
Alight = all out
Kroenkephoebe
Eurovision is that still a thing? What used to make me smile was they actually called it a ‘contest’. Its just neighbours voting for each other
Terreloon
“Most of the negative comments come from deep frustration because no matter how some want to package things up Arsenal there has been a serious decline.”
—————————————————————————————————————–
Well said. We all want Arsenal to win games. Some of us just have a different opinion how to achieve that. For me, we have to keep the pressure on KSE. This Sunday is the ideal time to do it.
Matt “but that would happen in a much more harmonious way if everyone cut the insinuations about who is a fan or who isn’t” This. Firstly, I have never said anyone is less of a fan. In fact on many occasions, including today, I have said that wanting a change of manager is a fair debate. It is. I have also clearly stated numerous times that I was against Artetas’ appointment. I was. However, as you have demonstrated, there is a reasonable way to debate and that is how we should all behave. Calling me a ‘FanBoy” or insinuating I… Read more »
Nelson
“Some of us just have a different opinion how to achieve that. For me, we have to keep the pressure on KSE. This Sunday is the ideal time to do it”
Agreed.
Bob N16
Regarding Saliba athletism makingPepe etbal more effective, Arteta has said , hemmed that Saliba would definitely be out of sight on loan ,or maybe sold next year. So we will not have the option unless #ArtetaOut
AFC
Fair comments. And it would be hypocritical of me not to apologise for my previous insult as well! 🙂
Kroenkephoebe
“Anyone got any interesting predictions?”
Leicester to beat Spurs and Villa to beat Chelsea. I think the fact that fans will be in the grounds will help Leicester & Villa.
I can’t see Liverpool not winning in front of their hostile crowd, so I think the final Champions League place is going to be Leicesters.
Oh, Arsenal 2-0 Brighton with a noisy Emirates.
Matt
It’s just passion mate. None of us are perfect.
“That table above is a positive sign. It’s 62% if the season. If you are choosing to prioritise the first 38% to get to the truth of whether this project is viable, you are being disingenuous.” So Pedro does a cut and paste job to massage the table, to manipulate what he wants to say, and he has the cheek to say people who disagree with him are being disingenuous? Pleeeease. Pedro, please don’t use words if you know what they mean. Forget about fake tables taken from completely arbitrary points in the season in a desperate attempt to justify… Read more »
*if you don’t know
Matt, see what I mean? It’s impossible to get away from it!!
“Finally, we should be talking football daily, not Arteta. I mean, 95% of the content is about Arteta, it’s ridiculous. ”
Well that’s because the football, tactics, team selections, in game management, substitution timing, substitution player selection and our general levels of performance are piss poor and that is all down to one person.
“If everyone, their dogs, their cats and even their unborn children knew which players are for sale its still standard negotiation tactic to not go out in the media and advertise your players.”
Yep someone gets it. Newcastle have fell head over studs for Willock and a bit of “He’ll be here next season” from Arteta will help squeeze even more coin out of Newcastle’s piggy bank for him.
Good move.
Seems like we’re homing in on Buendia by all accounts.
No brainer really.
AFC I think it is also fair to say that Pedro is the main reason that Arteta is such a focus in most conversations. He has built him up to be the second coming of Jesus and but for a very brief period of time, has staunchly supported him even at the worst points, which was not something he afforded Emery. So it’s really no surprise that you have the massively polarised opinions. Personally, I was a fan of Arteta’s in the early days, but what I have seen since tells me he isn’t the right man. That being said,… Read more »
Final games:
Arsenal v Brighton 2-0
A Villa v Chelsea 2-1
Fulham v Newcastle 1-1
Leeds v West Brom 3-0
Leicester v Spurs 2-1
Liverpool v Palace. 4-1
Man City v Everton 3-0
Sheff Utd v Burnley 1-1
West ham v Soton. 2-1
Wolves v Man Utd 1-2
Matt
99% of genuine fans are the same as you ultimately they don’t give a toss who the manager is if he’s doing a good job. I don’t like Rogers not sure what it is but I really dislike him and don’t want him at Arsenal but if we appointed him and we were competing for top 4 next season followed by competing for the PL a couple of seasons later I wouldn’t have much to complain about.
*Emery got fired for getting to the final of the Europa League (and losing) and finishing a point off fourth… and compared to Arteta a full 9 points ahead of him…”
Factually wrong…
I meant to say should have got fired! ;).
Marc
Agreed. Although personally I don’t mind Rodgers. Especially if he could bring a couple of players with him – Barnes and Maddison would do!
Matt
That’s the personal aspect – a mate of mine who’s been a season ticket holder for 30 odd years did not and still to this day finds it hard to admit he was wrong because he didn’t rate Gilberto.
Don’t worry I make sure he gets sufficient grief on that one.
I really hope we are genuinely in for Buendia. I think he would improve us much more than Odegaard does.
Pedro has very successfully framed the debate on here as being between “glass half empty”Arteta-out types and “glass half full” Arteta lovers. But the real question as far as Arsenal is concerned is why the glass isn’t three quarters or totally full. And that is down to the owners’ remoteness and ineptitude, and a long, long list of management and tactical mistakes by Arteta that we have endlessly discussed over here. Forget Vinai, forget Edu: Stan, Josh and Mikel are the real power centres at Arsenal. In my view, they are unlikely to change much or to improve over the… Read more »
*ask in = Ek in
Valentin, 11.42
‘We don’t have the personnel to play 4-2-3-1’ – that is precisely why I am advocating the purchase of another athletic/dynamic CM to partner Partey.
Pepe, of course, has his limitations but when he’s in an inside right position he is really dangerous shooting with his left foot. If you have an overlapping RB and 2CMs who can cover the FBs forward runs, you make our attack much more threatening.
Marc,
I don’t like how Rodgers present himself. He feels me with vibe of Ricky Gervais in the office. Everyone he opens his mouth, I cringe.
However I would have no problem with him as a manager, because ultimately I am not interested in what he says to the press. If Coco the clown were to win the premier league and the Champion’s League I don’t think anybody would protest.
Personally I would want Galtier/Campos or Flick/Rangnick as a manager/DoF duo.
Matt
“…it means Arsenal are having success, which is all I want. I don’t really care who is overseeing that success.”
Absolutely.
Except Mourinho….??!!!!! I really couldn’t suffer him.
Pedro is dropping hype bombs along the lines of “In our worst season ever, we are 8 points away from top 4” being smug about it like our season wasn’t complete and utter garbage and a failure. And we are supposed to actually be happy about it and celebrate it. And give more money to a failing duo of rookies.
Bob16, With both fullbacks high up, any ball loss higher and the team is susceptible to a long cross field ball and a onrushing midfield in the middle of the park now because they are covering the wide area. Liverpool deploy a 4-3-3 exactly for that reason. Their two fullbacks are often positioned quite high at the same time. There were numerous time where one fullback cross go too long and is retrieved by the other fullback. Two of their 3 midfielders can cover the wide area while still maintaining a presence in the middle of the park. Fabinho is… Read more »
AFC
I cant stand Mourhino, but even still, I would take still celebrate lifting the Champions League under him!
A moot point obviously at the moment, for various reasons!!
BobN16 “when he’s in an inside right position he is really dangerous” Yes. In a fluid system with a high tempo, Pepe has the ability to be our Mahrez. They are similar in many ways. Freddie Ljungberg was eulogising over him the other day, he claimed he was always scoring goals like the one against Place in training. I have noticed he’s getting better on his right side before he only used to go one way and was a bit too predictable. As you say, rather than hugging the sidelines, he should be moving and making runs into those inside-right… Read more »
We’re going to win the league next year. If Arteta can replicate his ‘since Christmas League table’ form we just need somebody half decent to manage the team from August to December 25th.
Simples.
Great point Bob about Pepe not getting enough support on the right side earlier in the season
He certainly has his limitations but I really appreciate his attacking intent and capability when he gets close to the 18
Used correctly he’s an asset albeit a flawed one
Right foots coming around too as crystal palace would acknowledge
I wanna know why Pedro is selectively looking at data ? You point at 62% of the season where we have done well , last 5 months . But its a marathon Pedro and if you screw up the start , you screw up the race, and then you cant point and say but we finished the race well at the end . You have to start well and continue doing well to last a marathon .
Thsi is interesting.
Season goals comparison:-
All comps:
Pepe:____PL: 46, GS: 14
Mahrez__PL: 46, GS: 14
Premier League:
Pepe:____PL: 28, GS: 8
Mahrez__PL: 26, GS: 9
AFCF
Some interesting prognosticactions there mate. Here are mine. I was joking about the Benteke hattrick by the way – he only ever seems to score against us!
Arsenal v Brighton 3-0 (Laca, G-Mart, Saka)
A Villa v Chelsea 2-2
Fulham v Newcastle 0-1 (willock)
Leeds v West Brom 3-2
Leicester v Spurs 4-3 (a real see saw)
Liverpool v Palace. 0-1
Man City v Everton 2-0
Sheff Utd v Burnley 0-0 (all day long)
West ham v Soton. 1-2
Wolves v Man Utd 0-1
If I were Arteta, I would be employing someone to follow Pepe round all summer repeatedly telling him ‘you’re the man’. The guy clearly has ability, but just doesn’t have the confidence to go with it. Some confidence and dare I say it, arrogance would do him the world of good!
After 37 games this season we have 58 points compared to 53 points last season.
We finished with 56 points last season so at worst we will have 2 points more 19/20.
Our chances of finishing above Spurs are 32%.
If we win our game, then the chance of finishing above Spurs is 78%.
% Chance of our final position:
7th 25%
8th 30%
9th 30%
10th 15%
Pepe has confidence
It’s difficult to thrive under managers who don’t value you